Green Greek Representative Programhttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek
University of WashingtonWed, 24 Jan 2018 23:27:51 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.6.1http://i1.wp.com/students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/cropped-pexels-photo-2.jpg?fit=32%2C32Green Greek Representative Programhttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek
3232115391260Letter from the Director: Sasha Gordonhttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1228
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1228#respondWed, 24 Jan 2018 22:42:26 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1228Hi everyone! I am so overjoyed to be your new Director, so I’d like to let you know a little bit about me!

As a student, I am a Freshman majoring in Business Administration, a member of Sigma Kappa, and extremely interested in Political Science, French, and Art History. Before I came to the UW, I lived in Orinda in the San Francisco East Bay. I knew that I wanted to expand my horizons, so I came here to experience a truly new and different terrain, and I am so glad that I did! I have been participating in environmental clubs since 6th grade, and have known for a long time that I wanted to bring it into my life on a much deeper level, and spread it to others at the same time. I heard about Green Greeks during Formal Fall Recruitment, and sought it out before I even knew where I’d end up. Very quickly, I became known around Sigma Kappa for sounding a lot like our previous Director, Talia Haller. Every time I brought up my interests, I was told that I needed to meet her. On the last day of Recruitment, she and I got matched together, and we slowly realized that we had both heard about the other before. Talia knew how passionate I was about the environment since she first met me, so when it came time to find a new Director, she asked me, and I leaped at the opportunity. The rest, of course, is history!

Going forward, my vision for Green Greeks is to start being more implementation-oriented and boots-on-the-ground. I plan to lead the group to develop more methods of bringing environmental options to the table. Our speakers will be more diverse in their careers, backgrounds, and lifestyles. This year, we will increase our membership and participation, and expand our influence beyond the chapters, into the larger UW and Seattle community. Finally, I plan to make the group more dynamic and social, and less cut and dry.

I look forward to this year and all the amazing things we’re going to do together!

]]>http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?feed=rss2&p=122801228Student Reflection: Waste Management and Pi Beta Phi by Ava Trindevahttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1220
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1220#respondFri, 12 Jan 2018 03:25:21 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1220Serving in the Green Greek team, I am a part of the Waste Management Team. It had never occurred to me to consider not only the amount of trash Greek systems must produce, but more importantly, the amount of waste that is not properly disposed of. Our amount of trash can be managed by properly sorting through our waste, thus decreasing our trash with the elimination of things that can be recycled or composted. During our first meeting, I learned that Seattle provides financial incentive for communities to participate in sorting their waste. Recycling is COMPLETELY FREE and compost bin pick-ups cost around $11 per bin. In comparison, the $300 for a trash bin per week. The main problem within Greek communities lies within contamination of waste, which can also lead to several fines. Not only is that damaging to the environment, it also results in large bills each chapter needs to pay when these funds could be reallocated for something more beneficial. Greek chapters struggle with properly sorting their waste, which is truly a trivial matter with substantial consequences. Not only would there be less trash being thrown away and more matter being reused in some way – whether recycled or composted – it would also save money by spreading out the waste properly to compost and recycling bins, away from trash. Utility bills further emphasized the effect of contaminated bins, pointing to potential hundreds of dollars, per house, per month being virtually wasted.

As a goal for my personal chapter, Pi Beta Phi, I was shocked during our waste audit of how many our own containers were contaminated. As a preliminary step, I set up a chapter presentation during which I educated members and let them know of what I intended to do to get us closer to a resolution. Everyone can properly dispose of their trash, to promote that, I reorganized bins throughout my house so that every trash been was accompanied by a compost or recycling bin depending on the room. In the study basement, for instance, I implemented more recycling bins because people were more likely to be throwing away papers there. Bathrooms had a trash and a compost for paper towels. The kitchen, where I noticed the most waste, I set up all threebins next to each other with up signage above each to remind members what waste was appropriate for each bin. Improving waste contamination was not enough. I wanted to decrease the trash we had, overall. I spoke with our house mom, consulted our budget and organized with our delivery to switch to eco-utensils. Our previous utensils were plastic that was neither recyclable or compostable. Seeing this as excessive waste, our house has now transitioned to utensils that are compostable, lessening our trash that pollutes the world.

]]>http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?feed=rss2&p=122001220Growing Sustainability: Engagement and Initiatives in Husky Athleticshttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1173
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1173#respondFri, 24 Nov 2017 23:39:12 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1173This week, Karen Baebler, assistant athletic director at UW, payed a visit to the Green Greeks to speak about her the sustainability efforts in the Athletic Department here on campus. Karen has worked in the athletic department for over 20 years. She started the green initiative within the department in 2012. It was inspiring to hear from her experiences at a place we all know and love: the Husky Stadium!

In 2012, with the renovation of Husky Stadium, sustainability in the athletic department was in full bloom. The architecture department was very versed in sustainable building, and the department wanted to become LEED certified. During the renovation process, 95% of the materials used were recycled on-site or off-site. For example, the old field is now used at Montlake Park.

Following the course of sustainable practice, the new stadium now utilizes a two-stream waste system to maximize correct bin placement. The primary initiative at the stadium has been waste diversion, as thousands of people use it on a weekly basis during the football season. In 2005, there was no compost at all; 85% of waste was garbage. Now, the stadium has conquered a 15% garbage rate, the rest being compost and recycle. Clearly, some great steps have been made.

As for future plans, Baebler plans to implement LED lights in Dempsey. She also hopes to install solar panels on the stadium, which could potentially power the entire stadium for the football season.

There are several ways students can get involved in green initiatives at UW, including capstone projects, ENVIR480 (a class involving an action-learning component), UW solar, and many more. We were so grateful for your guidance, Karen!

Finally, the Green Greeks had our elections for our 2018 executive board. We are so excited to welcome our new Director, Sasha Gordon to the team! Congrats Sasha, we can’t wait to see all that your bring to our group this year and how you plan to bring sustainability to our community.

Pictured left to right: Sasha Gordon, Amber Longrie, Karen Baebler, Talia Haller, and Rick Keil.
]]>http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?feed=rss2&p=117301173How to Succeed in Making the Business Case for Sustainabilityhttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1144
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1144#respondSun, 19 Nov 2017 10:00:25 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1144When it comes to sustainability, the business case is workable from all angles. Not only is it far more cost effective to invest in sustainable practices, but it keeps workers happy. On November 7th, the UW Green Greeks learned from two women, Annie Thomas and Katie Secrist, who work as consultants at Sustainable Business Consulting, located in Seattle. Essentially, what they do is help different companies integrate sustainability into their business model. They do so by assessing sustainability efforts across all departments and listening to what the business is struggling with and offering assistance where they can.

So, what does the next generation of business look like? Regarding Generation Y and millennials, 88% of grad students and young professionals factor an employer’s CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) score into where they want to work. 88% would consider leaving their job if their company’s CSR performance no longer held up. Therefore, people want to support sustainable business and are not interested in supporting companies that are lacking in this area.

There are several universal barriers that need to be overcome for business to make the switch. People are frequently overworked and do not have the time to implement any changes. Sometimes people don’t feel empowered and experience a sense of apathy and loss of enthusiasm. So, what is the solution?

Several big-name companies have implemented changes that have greatly improved the quality of their business. For example, UPS stopped taking left turns on delivery routes and saved $50 million. Washington State Convention and Trade Center installed more than 6,000 energy efficient lighting fixtures, which saved them more than $120,000. The simple things make a huge difference.

The argument here is that it’ll always be worth it to make a change. People will be happier coming to work and the company will save a considerable amount of money.

Thank you, Katie and Annie, for your wisdom and expertise in this field. It’s inspiring to know that there are strong players making the business case for sustainability in our community every day!

To learn more about Sustainable Business Consulting and the work that Katie and Annie do, click HERE!

]]>http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?feed=rss2&p=114401144Speaker Highlight: JR Fulton and a History of UW Sustainabilityhttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1135
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1135#respondFri, 03 Nov 2017 16:42:53 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1135At our most recent meeting, the Green Greeks got to listen to an experienced speaker, JR Fulton, about his role in keeping the UW campus sustainable. He has been passionate about sustainable buildings as soon as he found out that without proper information and execution, buildings can be incredibly detrimental to the environment. He has worked with Housing and Food services for quite some time as an architect and previously spent time living in an Eco Village in Scotland. Thanks to JR’s presentation, we were able to learn a lot from him about sustainability from an operational perspective.

To construct a sustainable building, it’s vital to understand the concept of resiliency. The building need to be able to respond to the climate and be future-proofed to be able to anticipate change that could challenge the design of said building. Sustainable buildings also need to have a high-performance ranking; they must be energy efficient, healthy, comfortable, cost effective to operate, and durable.

There is a sustainable building standard called LEED, which stands for Leadership Energy and Environmental Design. It is run by the US Green Standards Board. The University of Washington has 36 LEED accredited buildings on campus, which is something to be proud of! Mercer Court even has a rainwater system used for laundry; domestic water is not used at all when the system is working properly. There is always room for improvement, and our campus si already off to an amazing start.

So, how does one keep a building both accessible and efficient? Effective engineering. For example, it’s not necessary to strictly limit hot water use, as long as the water heaters are efficient. It is the little details like this that increase the longevity of these buildings and inspire further innovation.

The trick, as JR explains, is to use every sustainable resource available.

These techniques are being implemented on campus, as we speak, in the North Campus housing construction

As far as the future goes, Fulton believes society will move towards eco districts, which entails an entire neighborhood that is hooked together energy-wise. The UW campus is an ideal place for this sort of system.

Thank you JR Fulton, we are so thankful to have you working towards a better future here on campus.

]]>http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?feed=rss2&p=113501135Speaker Highlight: Advice from Candi Mabee, A Sustainability-Loving House Directorhttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1126
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1126#respondFri, 20 Oct 2017 19:17:56 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1126A former professional opera singer, house director, and a passion for sustainability? What’s not to love about Candi Mabee, who blessed the Green Greek Representative Program with her presence at our meeting this week. We learned a lot from her experience as a sustainability-loving house director, and are very thankful to have her here in the Greek Community at UW.

Candi Mabee, the house director at Phi Mu, is quite an inspiration to us all. In her single year working with Phi Mu, she has driven Phi Mu to the highest standard of sustainability. She understands a green lifestyle as the right thing to do for the future and our Earth. In the past as a house director she has focused on the zero waste initiative, meaning utilizing compost and recycle systems to save money and protect the earth from methane gas release.

In order to ease the process of ensuring everyone in the chapter is doing their part, Candi recommends getting the kitchen staff on board, having the system set up so everything is easy and ready to go, accountability of individual members, and to prioritize communication about what goes where. This includes signage, frequent social media posts, and educational programs at chapter meetings. In regard to talking to house moms/directors about sustainability practices, Candi suggests coming prepared with research on cost benefits and how your house is doing, understanding the motivations of the house director, and working with them to find a solution. The key is constant communication.

Candi also recommends shopping at wholesale retail centers, such as the Costco on Aurora, for chapter necessities. Specifically, the Costco business center as they have the necessary compostable utensils and mealtime staples for an extremely reasonable price, as seen below:

Sustainable item

Cost

12oz world centic cold cups

$15.99 for 200 units

12oz cold cup lids

$7.79 for 200 units

Clamshell (late plates boxes)

$18.59 for 100 units

9″ plate

$19.99 for 250 units

12 oz world centric hot cup

$12.69 for 200 units

12 oz hot cup

$16.09 for 200 units

Following Candi’s presentation, the Green Greeks had the opportunity to explore our own case studies and apply the tactics and tools Candi presented to us to see the applicability of her experience and prepare for real life situations.

Thank you Candi for those helpful hints. Your efforts have not gone unnoticed and we appreciate your impact here on campus!

]]>http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?feed=rss2&p=112601126Exec Spotlight: Daniel Merzhttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1123
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1123#respondFri, 13 Oct 2017 17:09:42 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=1123Everyone involved in the Green Greek Representative Program is passionate about sustainable practices, but having strong leadership like Daniel can help everyone reach that next level. We are proud to highlight Daniel Merz in our Executive spotlight this week!
Daniel Merz, our VP of Operations, has always had a knack for loving the environment. “I’ve always been very passionate about the environment, having had recycling and compost programs in all my previous schools. My passion definitely was born there.”

Sustainability can be a complex process that requires planning ahead and knowing what your own personal habits are. “On a grander scheme I have always been very efficiency oriented. Throughout my life I’ve always tried to streamline my daily practices and being sustainable naturally fit in. Whether that was turning off lights when I could, using less water when I can, and wasting right, it’s always fit into my way of living.”

Thinking of sustainability as simply being efficient with resources is a great way to think about it.

As for what his job as VP of Operations entails, he manages all the project groups, consults them in difficult situations, analyzes their performance, and guides them to their goals and club goals. A very important role!

When asked about how the Green Greek Representative Program has helped him to better his own environmental space, he proudly responded, “Green Greeks has given me an increased space to make changes not only to my environment to my communities. Professionally, I am able to grow as a leader, collaborating with both fellow students but sustainable professionals in Seattle Public Utilities and other environmental organizations, we can make this world a better place that lasts a lot longer for the human race. We just have to unify.”

]]>http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?feed=rss2&p=112301123Green Greeks Wishes UW a Happy First Day of School!http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=999
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=999#respondWed, 27 Sep 2017 21:26:44 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=999With summer time coming to a close, we at Green Greeks are so excited to welcome everyone back to campus and look forward to getting to work with all of our new and returning members this fall. We are so excited to announce that after two years of hard work and perseverance, we will be an accredited course this year while we dive into our third year of sustainability in the Greek Community. The Green Greeks Representative Program offers 1 credit to all of our members and up to 2 credits for our project leaders, which is an amazing accomplishment for us and we are so excited to offer this opportunity to our members.

Over the last two years we have learned a lot from our members and from those around us. We have seen over 150 representatives in over 50 unique major programs across the University of Washington with a Sorority participation rate of 84% and a Fraternity participation rate of 57%. We have seen fourteen different chapters save an average of $2,800 per year through sustainable water solutions: which is around $2ook savings in total. Currently, we are on track to save upwards of $500k in the next 5 years and it wouldn’t be possible without the immense support we’ve received from our brothers and sisters campus wide!

This year, we will be still meeting Tuesday’s every other week starting on October 3rd. We have some amazing speakers and presentations lined up for this quarter and can’t wait to share what we learn with the whole Greek Community. Since we are now accredited, our grading is based mainly on participation so that we can get as many men and women working to better our homes and our environment as possible. With that in mind, we are so excited to welcome new (and old) members to our new Green Greek course and can’t wait to see what kind of positive impact we can have on the UW campus this year.

]]>http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?feed=rss2&p=9990999Member Highlight: Alex Urasakihttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=986
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=986#respondWed, 17 May 2017 06:34:58 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=986This week we’re highlighting another member of our project leader board, Alex Urasaki. Alex is currently our VP of Events and works endlessly to plan our fundraisers and feeds. This quarter alone, he worked to coordinate our Pagliacci Pizza Feed as well as our Chipotle Fundraiser. He is currently a Junior here at the University of Washington, majoring in Environmental Sciences and Resource Management, making him a very valuable asset to our leadership team. Alex is also a Marketing and Outreach Coordinator for EcoReps, another organization on campus. Some other events Alex has made a huge impact on are the UW Sustainability Earth Day event and our upcoming Green Greek Competition (stay tuned for more info in the future!)

In addition to being a valuable asset to our organization, he contributes to the Greek community through his Chapter as well. He is a member of the Sigma Nu Fraternity, Gamma Chi chapter. He currently holds the position of House and Sustainability Chairman and is the former Vice President and Philanthropy Chairman. Sigma Nu prides themselves on their principles of love, honor, and truth, which Alex works to incorporate in his life.

In his free time, Alex spends a lot of time outside, as any Green Greek should! Alex also is very engaged in the music world, being a self-proclaimed “avid concert-goer and music fan,” and is highly active on his Soundcloud, sharing music with other music lovers. He really enjoys being involved in the Green Greek organization because “it’s the most passionate group I’ve worked with so far and the events are a really exciting way to see sustainability in action.” In the future, Alex is really looking forward to spreading the word about the program even further, the April Pizza feed was just the beginning!

Look out for more of his fantastic event planning in the future and on facebook, Great work Alex!

]]>http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?feed=rss2&p=9860986Speaker Highlight: Kristi Straushttp://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=982
http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=982#respondTue, 16 May 2017 10:15:29 +0000http://students.washington.edu/ecoreps/greengreek/?p=982Did you know that the way we live our lives now is threatening our life support system here on Earth? How about the fact that 1/3 of the waste on the University of Washington’s campus is food waste? As of 2012, we are using 156% of the biodiversity on our planet, according to speaker Kristi Straus. We were lucky enough to have Dr. Kristi Straus come and talk to us this last Tuesday, May 9th, about her passion for sustainability sustainable habits.

Sustainability is a very broad term that essentially means to meet your present needs without it affecting the ability of future generations to meet their needs or run out of resources. The premise behind sustainable eating is finding “What needs to change so we can live sustainably… it also includes economic and social components…socially just and economically manageable for those who live in those systems,” according to Dr. Straus. Everyone consumes food, but few people know how to do so in a sustainable manner. Sustainable food habits include food that is ecologically responsible, fair and accessible, produces no waste, is healthy, and is local. While the idea of “Local” is up to your discretion, the concept your “food-print” comes into play when you think about the distance food travels to get to your plate. Your food-print tells you the environmental impact of your food consumption, which is most commonly measured in the miles it takes for food to travel from the point of production to the point of consumption. Currently, the average distance food travels to get to us is around 1,500 miles; just think of the carbon dioxide implications involved in that much travel!

The most important thing you can do to reduce your food-print is to eat locally – within reason. Eating local doesn’t just reduce the food-print, but it also provides fresher food and benefits the immediate economy of your community. Buying local could mean participating in a community sponsored agriculture program or buying at a farmer’s market. To get the most out of this, look for organic certified products: they’re not only better for the environment, but they’re better for you too!

Kristi Straus grew up in California and went to school in Maine as a Biology Major. She then took time off to travel and went to Morocco to participate for the Peace Corps for two years, where she worked with health and clean water and witnessed how sustainable living works in other countries. Dr. Straus said that it “made her think about resources and happiness in a new way.” She now has a Ph.D. from the University of Washington and focuses on how conservation, science, and policy all play into one another.

(For UW Students) To find out more about the fight for sustainability and our planet, Dr. Straus recommends taking ENVIR 239, ENVIR 439, ENVIR 240, or ENVIR 495. Or visit one of these sites: